Put on your boxing gloves. lol. What's everyone's view about hunting deer over bait. Archery or rifle. Personally, I've done it for archery season here in Wisc. I still do it. But I won't do it for Rifle season. Thoughts?

As for me, I don't deer hunt over bait. I guess my biggest issue, at least in Wisconsin, is with the law-breakers that put a pickup truck load of corn in the woods. It happens far too often. I've seen pickups at the feedmill on a Friday afternoon with a truck bed overflowing with sacks of corn amongst the tree stands and ATV's. It makes you wonder just what the heck all of that corn is for...

I guess if a person is going to bait for deer, follow the letter of the law and I won't have a problem with them doing it.

I agree with you. I hunt for deer in the Eau claire county forest and yes, I see tons of corn piles where they weren't yesterday the day prior to season opener. I do follow the law and am fine with the 2 gal, stipulation. Around here, there is so much posted land and even though farmers have no problem with me trapping their land they will not, under any circumstance let me hunt deer. with or without them. So, it's to the forest I go, and out there there just aren't any fields of any nature. Thousands of acres to be in so I guess by Lil Bit's reconkeing and yours, I'm cheating. But as I stated, it's only cheating during archery season.

cant bait here,but ya can find a natural salt lick to watch over,i dont hunt much anymore,gets in my way. well should say i have let it get inthe way: quail,ducks,geese,deer ,coon.,training dogs,lol no wonder i couldnt find time to trap as much as i wanted too.

I mean, to each their own. I just couldn't feel good doing it. Even for archery, I'd rather rattle a buck in than invite them to an 'all you can eat buffet' and shoot them while grazing.

I just can't do it. Same with bear. I'd rather hunt them with dogs, where they have a greater chance of getting away, than invite themto a slop pile where I can say to myself, "Enh. I'll wait for a bigger one to show up."

For the same reasons I won't pay to go to some fenced 'trophy buck' farm in Kansas. I'd rather get an 8 pointer that scores 126 that I rattled in after clearing my lane, and making mock scrapes, than a 14 pointer that scores 168 that was in a herd of 8+pointers just kind of cruising around under a manmade stand.

Are we talking natural bait or added bait? I've never passed up on an acorn-laden patch of oak trees. However, I never put out bait...that's only legal for bear in Maine, although, every November it amazes me how many cut apples and acorns just happen to fall on the ground in front of a tree stand....

I just can't do it. Same with bear. I'd rather hunt them with dogs, where they have a greater chance of getting away, than invite themto a slop pile where I can say to myself, "Enh. I'll wait for a bigger one to show up."

It is funny how different people think/react differently to the same thing. Even though there is not a right or wrong answer/stance. I guided bear hunters for 9 years, and still do just to a lesser degree. I don't agree with hound hunting. I don't see the sport in running an animal to death. It is not for me. Every one of my hunts were bait hunts. I prefer to see the animal in his surroundings, acting as much on his own terms as possible. I have hunted the same woods on many occassions, with dog hunters. I have witnessed some very unethical/illegal things. (to many dogs, adding/replacing dogs, shooting for the client, etc) Before you all go peeing on yourselves, I know this is a small percentage, and it goes with all groups, baitsitters included. Factually (is that a word )speaking WDNR numbers show that a higher percentage of animals are taken with hounds than without. 2005 cat harvest was 83% hounds, and 17% trapped, and you know as well as i that there are more trappers than, bobcat hunters. Ask a hound hunter how many bears they treed and walked away from before pulling the trigger, a hound hunter, IMO, has more opportunities to look at and select an animal than a bait sitter. In general bears taken in the same area with hounds will be bigger. Hound hunters can cover more area alot faster and cheaper than baitsitters can, giving the hound hunter more bears to choose from. When I get my 30 or so baits set up, for the 10-15 sitters, that is what I have to choose from. If things aren't going so good, I can't just pull up stakes, travel 15-100 miles looking for new bears. With 4-6 dogs on a bear I am not sure how they "have a better chance of getting away". What is really amusing to me is the dog hunters who slam bait hunters, yet they have out there own 30-40 places to start there dogs from (yes bait stations). In the reality of it, the small percentage that is doing things unethically/illegally is a very small portion of the outdoor public. Though it is a small percentage it is made up of YOU and ME, because that is what we all are in the nonoutdoorsmans eye. We all get lumped into bambi killing, non-trap checking, unethical worms. So I guess to sum it up, if it is legal in your state and you are an outdoorsperson, don't slam it if you don't do it. You don't have to believe in it, or do it, but it is other peoples right to. I want my kids to be able to have the same choices when they grow up. United we stand, alone we will crumble.

Bear have a better chance of getting away because bears can climb ravines better than dogs, bears that go onto private property can't be shot, or are in a tree that you can't get a shot at, and bears can't be shot after dark. so, with that being said... more bears get away.

Besides, running them with dogs isn't about shooting the bear. It's about treeing the bear. We hunt every year, but the last bear I took was 3 years ago, and only because he was a big boy.

I don't agree with it. Nothing said will change that. If it's legal, that's your perogative, but I'm allowed to say what I say as long as I'm not bashing you personally. So neener neener.

I reckon I'll have to side with Ted Nugent on this "hunting over bait" issue...what is bait and what is not bait. Is a cornfield bait? Is a white oak flat a baited area? Is a watering hole considered bait? Is doe in heat lure bait? Let's not point too many fingers at who may be correct or incorrect. Let's just unite together as outdoorsmen and do what we each like doing as long as it is legal.

where i live here in MI, i cannot bait due to the bovine TB issue. In other areas where i hunt, it is allowed. I have done just fine without bait as with bait. it all comes down to scoutin and knowin where the deer are or gonna be.